The Madhav Ramadasan directorial venture Apothecary, starring Suresh Gopi, Asif Ali and Jayasurya in lead roles, released yesterday on August 7th. Though the movie has been getting largely positive reviews, it is facing considerable trouble in some parts of the state and it remains to be seen if it spreads throughout.
In Kozhikkode, yesterday, Youth Congress activists barged in to a theatre and stopped the screening of the movie and declared that they will not allow it to be shown at any cost. The reason of course is the lead actor Suresh Gopi, who is facing an unofficial ban by the Congress party for the remarks he made against the Chief Minister of Kerala, Oommen Chandy.
In a fiery speech he delivered, the Commissioner star had said the Chief Minister’s stand on the issue of Aranmula Airport project was anti environmental and ‘anti people’. He also added that the CM’s remarks on the problems there was utter nonsense and he should consult with people who know the facts before speaking on it!
That seems plenty to start a war, yes? Wonder what the actor was thinking…
Now the entire movie, which was made painstakingly, might pay the price for some ill-considered verbal punches thrown by the action star.
It does not help that in a certain area of the state, actor Asif Ali too is facing a ban by the Shiv Sena for an incident, which happened a few days back. Some girls were assaulted for some Facebook comments they made against the actor, by a group of guys claiming to be Asif Ali fans.
Though the matter was cleared up later to exonerate Asif, the ban still continues.
Let us see if this clash of politics versus cinema affects the prospects of Apothecary in a serious manner.
The film has been produced by Dr George Mathew and Dr Baby Mathew under the banner of Arambankudiyil Cinemas.
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